


Adventures of a Witch

by BigCityWitch



Category: Akatsuki no Yona | Yona of the Dawn, Original Work
Genre: Attempt at Humor?, I'm Bad At Tagging, POV Original Character, how Ao got his name
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-21
Updated: 2018-07-18
Packaged: 2019-05-09 22:59:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14725226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BigCityWitch/pseuds/BigCityWitch
Summary: When they find a copper-haired woman in front of the hut with walls laden with dried herbs and bones, they see a witch. And witches catch a nice price at the market, where they're headed.So this is a story of a young woman, whose journey begins by three men coming out of the forest and throwing a bag over her head.This takes place in the universe of Akatsuki no Yona, about ten years before Yona is born. You don't need to know the anime or manga to understand it though. There aren't any major spoilers either. The only character taken from the original story is Ao. I hope you enjoy it :)





	1. Meeting the devil

In a forest near the mountains, the ancient oaks were illuminated by the golden shimmer of a bonfire. Ten boorish figures were soaking in its warmth, nine of them sharing a bottle of Sake. 

The tenth was currently focused on a raven, which hopped along the edges of the camp in search of something eatable. The small animal helped the shivering woman to block out her surroundings in general and the men, who were responsible for the ropes around her wrists and ankles in particular.

It was a small relief to know where ever she might end up, there would always be some animals to keep her company. Black eyes met green ones as if to assure her that she wasn't alone and never would be before it stretched out its wings and took off. Their gaze followed it to the sky and for a few blissful moments, her mind flew away with it. 

But soon the crackling of the fire trickled back into their awareness, and so did the uncouth voices. 

"Let's hunt down that freak with demonic eyes living around here. Might catch a nice price."  
The one nearest to the old tree slurred as he swished around the liquid in the bottle before taking a hearty slug of it. 

"Yeah, but no one, who came for him ever returned. He's a devil."  
The answer came with a creepy grin, which revealed at least two black teeth as its owner ripped the bottle from the first one to take a greedy swig himself. 

"Hah, we can take some rube, who calls himself a devil."

A murmur of assent came from the lot lounging around the flames and the conversation shifted to the amount of money they might get for the rarity.  
So they are on the hunt for all kinds of human rarities, the prisoner thought distantly, and obviously, they aren't all that afraid of warriors either. Maybe it was a good thing then, that my capture has gone so smoothly. At least there haven't been any casualties this way.

While the voices got louder and more unintelligible as the pile of emptied bottles grew, the rust-haired captive was once again lost in thoughts about home until restless sleep finally claimed her.

 

Two days later the scout came running to announce their a weird looking man with a mask heading straight towards them. 

The leader smirked and announced this was their happy day as their prey came to them on their on presenting himself on a silver platter. So they scattered, their minds already contemplating what they would do with the prize.

By the time the rather imposing man with a horned mask, that covered the upper half of his face, reached the small clearing, only two men were in the open. While six were hiding behind some bushes, three on each side, the smallest one sat in a tree with a quiver full of anesthetic-dipped arrows.

Even though they were all too sure of themselves, they had planned for a worthy opponent.

Their prisoner was tied to a nearby tree, which was hidden behind a few elder bushes and hoped to use the commotion to free herself, without anyone noticing. Even though she didn't know exactly what she would do once she was free, she was positive that almost everything would be better than being sold to whoever bid the highest price.

Still, her eyes were trained on the newcomer, who surveyed the group not missing a single one of them. Even though the mask concealed his eyes, she shivered as they grazed over her. 

Deliberately he turned back to the small delegation standing right before him, one hand already on the hilt of the sword on his back.

"I take it, you've come for me?"

As if that had been their line the first two bandits charged at him, but the warrior parried their blows effortlessly and it didn't take two full minutes for them to lie at his feet, their blood tinting the mossy ground. 

Maya was torn between mourning the loss of the chef and cheering for the unknown fellow. If he kept dodging the arrows, that had started buzzing through the damp air, he might stand a chance to stay a free man.

In a surprise attack the six men remaining at the ground came at him from both sides, but even they weren't able to land a single blow. They did, however, manage to distract him long enough for the archer to sink an arrow into his shoulder.

A sigh escaped her as she resumed chafing of the rope on the bark. 

No matter how good of a fighter he was, now it was a matter of minutes until he lost consciousness. 

And indeed it didn't take long for his blows to get more sluggish, but even in his weakened state the outlaws were no match for him and dropped like flies. Some even hit by their own archer, who now shot in a panicked frenzy. 

But no second arrow hit their target and soon the hand reaching into the quiver remained empty. An eery quiet settled between the trees. Only the rustling of leaves could be heard as the staggering warrior and the weaponless archer regarded each other.

Drenched leather boots squelched through the blood-soaked ground, as the swordsman swayed towards his last opponent and simply cut down the whole tree that held the small man.

After his final enemy had fallen, he too fell face first in the damp moss.

The only person still conscious studied the scene before her and decided it would help her cause a lot to finally get rid of that stupid rope still tying her to the pine.

At last being free, she probed the abrasive burns where the ropes had been and sighed. This would hurt for a while and probably leave ugly scars. Making a mental note to find some marigold, she turned to inspect the men, finding that the young swordsman indeed was the only one still possessing a pulse.


	2. Making a new friend

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> By the way ao means 'blue' in Japanese and shiro means 'white'.  
> Enjoy :)

After making sure that the blue-haired man's health was in no immediate danger, she went to each of the bandits, closed their eyes and wished their souls a safe journey.

All those times she witnessed this ritual played in her mind, back when she had watched and Hana had recited the ancient words and later when she was the one who spoke them. There had always been a great sense of peace settling over her when she felt the souls ascend.

Now, however, it was lacking. Maybe it was because her feelings of hurt and anger still clung to them, or maybe it was simply the fact that she had just witnessed people dying by someone else's hand for the very first time. A fact that she stubbornly prohibited from sinking in just yet.

First, she had to set up camp and treat who she had resolved to take in as her patient. Her freedom might just have been a byproduct of him ensuring his own but still, she was free and it was thanks to him.

After scouting the area for a while, she found a clearing near a little stream, where the sun warmed the earth beneath her feet and the grass gently swayed in the wind. The soft gurgling of the creek and the chirping of birds filled her ears, granting her the sense of peace she had longed for.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath of warm earthy aroma before she began her work to set up their camp.

As she went to retrieve the bluehead though, she encountered another problem: How was she going to move him?

He was about a head taller than her, of a sturdy build, and due to his current state not inclined to help her in any way. After dragging him for a few meters she tried rolling him instead - much easier. In her mind, she apologized to him for such an indignant way of treating him, but it was the only way she could realistically hope to get this done.

When they arrived at the camp the sun stood significantly lower in the sky and the young man in her care had lost his mask somewhere along the way, dirt and grass covered him all over, and his hair was as green and brown as it was blue. Maya, on the other hand, was panting slightly and covered in sweat. She arched her back and winced at the cracking.

"Ouch, you sure are heavy, my blue friend. Let's make a deal, you stay here and watch the camp and I go and collect firewood, so we won't freeze tonight."

It took the rest of the day for her to carry a decent amount of wood and marigold, all the supplies she had gathered from the bandits, as well as the warrior's sword and mask to the clearing.

The night had settled over them and the cries of owls echoed through the clearing while the flames covered it in dancing shadows. She loved the nighttime and its tranquility. The moon seemed to shower her in his healing light washing the recent jarring events away.

Humming an ancient melody to herself she examined the young man again for any wounds she might have missed the first time but was satisfied to find none.

By the time her patient was finally fresh and clean and all his wounds were properly cared for, her eyes were so heavy she barely managed to get to her own mat before sleep claimed her.

The next morning something wet and cold on her cheek woke her up. She opened her eyes and found herself staring straight into the bright blue eyes of a white wolf. With her heart beating like crazy her throat, questions of where she was, why this was happening and how she might get out of this in one piece shot through her mind.

The last question answered itself as a rough tongue licked her face and the beast snuggled up to her. She distractedly petted its head, not quite sure what was happening. Looking around she noticed the warriors robe gently swaying in the wind answering the question of where she was and what had happened the last days.

Shifting her focus back to the fluffy monster next to her she saw a nasty gash on its side. So it was just another patient that had found the way to her.

When she felt like she was trusted enough to move, she got a clean rag and carefully disinfected the wound, while softly whispering encouragements to the whining wolf. It must be a very wise animal to understand, that while my actions cause pain, they will help it, she thought. After that, she wrapped a bandage soaked with marigold tea she had prepared for the warrior around it.

"There you go, darling, that should help"

Ruffling the fur between its ears, she couldn't shake the feeling she had just made a friend.

Sometimes these things happened to her. A hurt animal would see her and decide without further ado to seek help from this human. She was grateful for their trust and always took good care of them. It was bittersweet though when they returned to the forest never to be seen again.

This time, however, her furry friend returned when she was cooking dinner. So she slid her, at least it appeared to be a 'her', a plate of fresh fish.

Ao, who had gotten reduced to the color of his hair for a lack of his real name, was currently propped up against a tree so Maya could pour soup down his throat as she knelt beside him. A few moments later Shiro, who shared Ao's fate of getting an unimaginative name, trotted over from the fire and laid her head in Maya's lap.

She must have fallen asleep while ruffling the wolfs soft fur, since the cold had crept into her bones and left every part of her body aching. Still half asleep she swatted at something on her throat, only for her hand to come to contact with cold metal. Suddenly completely alert her eyes shot open and followed the weapon at her throat to the warrior holding it.


	3. An interlude at midnight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry this took so long, but Maya and I had vastly different opinions on how this should go...   
> Hopefully, you are able to enjoy it nevertheless^^

He was without a doubt the most ungrateful patient she ever had. Not only did he hold a sword to her throat, he did it as a means of waking her up in the middle of the night. 

It felt weird to glare at an inanimate mask, but unfortunately, she couldn't just snatch and glare directly at his eyes.

"What's the meaning of this?"

"Who are you?"

"I'm the one, who patched you up. Now go back to sleep."

"Why?"

"Because it's in the middle of the night."

"Why did you 'patch me up'?"

"Because you were hurt."

He tilted his head at her in silent judgment, before he sheathed his sword and turned away.

"We're leaving"

"Nope, you can do whatever you want, even though I'd recommend taking it slow for now, but I'll sleep right here at least until the sun comes up."

It didn't take a second for the shining metal to come down again, barely an inch away from her nose. She really hoped he could somehow see through this mask, otherwise, this would be even more frightening.

"We're leaving"

"What the hell?! What's wrong with you to brandish your sword at innocent people just because they don't follow your whims? No way I'm leaving, I'm tired and I need to sleep. Go badger somebody else."

"Now"

They stared at each other for a few moments. He had every advantage there was, he was stronger, had a weapon and was again looming over her. But she had the rightful anger of someone awoken in the middle of the night just to be harassed. The last two days she had treated him and made sure he was going to wake up again and this was her thanks? 

"Come with me, or die now and here."

"Why? Do you want to sell me, too?"

She growled, her sleep-deprived anger turning into sharp bitterness. It made him falter, but only for a moment. Then he straightened again, but his tone was softer as he spoke.  
"I have to take you to the elders."

"Why?"

Her mouth tasted bitter with resignation. She had no chance, but to comply. For all she knew, she might have escaped one pack of human traffickers to stumble into the hands of another. 

"As a thank you for helping me, if you will."

She raised an eyebrow at him but said nothing. It would be best to play the obedient captive for now and avoid any shackles. The anesthetic was probably still lingering in his system, meaning a walk would wear him out thoroughly. If she waited for that, she could simply escape then. 

Slipping into her role she sighed.

"At least let me pack a few things. You can eat the rest of the soup, while I'm at it."

There was no way he wasn't starving after only having the little soup the managed to feed him for two days. His stomach grumbled, but he didn't move. Why didn't he...?

"You think it's poisoned."

A nod.

"Why would I try to poison you?! If I wanted you dead I would have just left you with your face in the mud to die!"

No reaction. His being wary of her almost felt like a compliment. He regarded her as some kind of equal after all.

"Do I have to eat from it first, so you can be sure it's not tampered with?"

Another nod.

About an hour after the pot was practically licked clean, they arrived at a small hut hidden in the forest. He opened the weather-beaten door and pointed at a sleeping mat. 

"Sleep"

All her plans of escaping while he slept were forgotten as she barely managed to pull the blanket over herself before sleep claimed her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading :)  
> I hope to post the next chapter much faster.  
> And thanks to Talion, TarotQueen and the dear guests for leaving kudos <3  
> I'd be happy if you left kudos and/or a comment, too.


	4. A not so warm welcome

It was way past sunrise when she awoke to a light snoring. The warrior was slumped against the wall by the door. It would seem as if today was her lucky day.

Silently she gathered her bag and walked on her toes. When she passed him, however, a hand shot out and snatched her wrist. A second later she lay pinned to the ground, the cold metal at her throat becoming uncomfortably familiar.

"Where do you think you're going?"

He all but hissed and her mind went blank. No point in trying to hide her intentions, she had been caught red-handed. Hana had once said that when you have no cards left to play, you have to be bold.

"Obviously, I'm trying to escape my newest kidnapper"

Her tone did not give away the fact, that her heart was racing and cold sweat began to drench her shirt. She sounded perfectly bitter and accusing, hoping to shift the focus to him. It worked.

"I'm not kidnapping you"

"What else do you call it, when you force someone to come with you by constantly threatening their life?"

She glanced down at the sword to prove her point. If he had a good bone in his body, this might actually work. Maybe she could talk him into a having a bad conscience and make him forget her escape attempt, or better yet make him let her go.

"Sparing their life"

His voice sounded almost pained and he sighed before he stood up. He offered her his hand, but when she took it, he pulled her far to close and warned her in a low voice.

"Don't try it again, woman. You can't escape from me, remember that" 

She stared at the eyes painted on his mask. A small squeak left her mouth when he pushed her away.  
This guy was scary as hell. One moment he seemed to be soft and approachable and the next he was back to threatening her. He reminded her of a hurting animal in a corner. She had always been warned of them and their unpredictability.

It was silent for a moment before he demanded her to follow him. 

Not far from the hut, they had stayed in was a small village. When they entered, a stern looking man with silver hair and deep sitting gray eyes came up to them.

"Lord Seiryuu! Where have you been?! You can't leave for days on end and abandon your duties!"

"Days?" 

He turned to Maya, who just shrugged.

"You've been out for more than a day"

It was then that the villager really took notice of her. He stuttered before his face twisted in rage.

"Why did you bring a stranger here?! Have you completely forgotten about the rules?"

"I haven't. I brought her to ask for your advice. She was the hostage of the men I disposed of and tended to me when I was poisoned."

By now a group of curious people had already gathered around them. They eyed her as if they had never seen a foreigner. Their gaze holding a morbid fascination, that scared her a little.

"And now what? You're getting sentimental about killing her?"

Now was her turn to stutter. A cold shiver ran down her back. Was this a village elder? Did they order Ao to kill people? Had these people gathered to witness an execution? 

"What the hell?! I'm right here, you know? I nursed your Lord back to health, how the heck is that punishable by death?"

The village elder seemed intent on ignoring her, but Ao turned to her, his tone carrying a slight note of guilt.

"It's not. Having seen me, however, is."

"What the hell, Ao?! Now I really start to wish, I had let you die in the mud!"

Suddenly the mood shifted and she could feel new gazes on her, while the gathered onlookers whispered among themselves. She didn't really listen but apparently calling him Ao had caused the new atmosphere.

Obviously, it was a grave sin to give their esteemed Lord nicknames. Why had she blurted out that stupid moniker anyway? 

"Ao?"

At least he seemed to be more surprised than affronted.

"It's kind of the most striking feature about you..." she squirmed a little before she remembered what their discussion had been about before her blunder "but that's not what this is about! Why are you guys so intent on killing me?!"

Finally, the elder deemed her worthy of an answer.

"We can't trust you. Now that you're friendly with the Lord Seiryuu even less."

"I don't understand your logic, but I don't need to. You don't need to trust me, just let me go and you never have to worry about me again!"

"No knowledge about this village or Lord Seiryuu may leave this place"

"I don't know anything about this village, or your Lord Seiryuu except for his name. He was out like a light the whole time I tended to him."

"You know he exists. That information can't leave this village."

"You mean I have to stay here?"

"No, you can't"

"Why not? She can't tell anyone if she's here" Ao rejoined the conversation.

"We can't trust her. She would just make a run for it the first chance she gets."

"If she does, I'll find her and kill her. There's nowhere she can hide from me."

His tone left no room for doubt. He seemed to be somehow capable and perfectly willing to do just that. It sent another chill down her spine. 

The elder didn't question his capability either, he just regarded the younger man and sighed.

"So you vow for her, Lord Seiryuu?"

"I vow, she won't leave this village alive"

"Good, she's your responsibility then."

The blue-haired man turned to her and she could swear that his eyes were boring into hers regardless of the wooden mask.

"I'll keep an eye on you. If you try to run, I'll kill you without hesitation or warning, understood?"

She nodded stiffly before Ao turned around and just left. All eyes landed on her again in scrutiny as the villagers began whispering among themselves again. She felt a little miffed that he had left her by herself to deal with these lunatics.

Well, better work with what she got, not that they backed down from their 'generous' offer to let her stay alive.

"So... Um... What now? I'm a healer, I could either help your healer or..."

A humped small man, who seemed to be the healer of the village, glared at her and for a moment she thought he was going to spit at her feet.

"I don't need your help. I don't need anyone around, who's got the Seiryuus eye following them." 

"Okay, where else can I stay? If you have a spare hut, I could practice there, or I could make my self a tent."

"There isn't a free house for you, nor are we in need of another healer. Your job will simply be to stay out of our way. Should the need for your help arise, we will let you know."

Talk about making a bear till a field. She had to strain to keep the edge out of her words.

"So... What shall I do and where am I going to stay?"

"You'll have to stay with someone"

After some gasps, the whispers started again. This time she listened in. 

"He brought her, and now one of us shall take her in?" 

"...to have someone under my roof he has an eye on" 

"She even gave him a name, who knows how she 'tended' to him"

After some time the village elder cleared his throat rather loudly.

"Is there anyone, who volunteers to take her in? I won't force anyone, but if there isn't anyone willing, she's going to have to stay with him."

Another collective gasp was to be heard, but the whispers died down as everybody suddenly became very interested in their feet.

Why did they seem so afraid of Ao? Was there any truth to the rumor about a demon in his eyes? Was that the reason he would be able to find her? And for the mask on his face? But more importantly: Was she a prisoner now?

When nobody spoke, it was decided and she found herself in front of the hut they had stayed the night in again. 

Apparently, it wasn't abandoned as she had thought, but rather the spartan home of the blue-haired man.

She was pretty sure, he wouldn't be happy about the arrangement that had been made without his consent, but it was his own fault he had left the discussion early. Not that she was any happier, she could imagine better housemates than a grumpy warrior with a horned mask. 

Shaking her head to clear the thoughts, she knocked on the door. Almost instantly the young warrior stood in the frame.

"What do you want?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading :)  
> Thanks to EHyde and the guests for leaving kudos <3  
> I'd be happy if you left kudos and/or a comment as well. Constructive criticism is also very welcome!

**Author's Note:**

> I will probably post more chapters as I have already written a few. I don't know how frequently I will edit and upload them though. Comment and kudos will keep me motivated and I'll work faster ;)


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